Today, I'm going to talk about factions. I'm going to take a page out of my Dread Sands game for this. In that game, PCs belong to factions that get them bonuses. I liked the way it worked, and so I'm going to port it over to The Coyote Lode and expand it. Here's my problem, though. So many of the factions remind me of stuff out of Deadlands. I guess I should be too worried about emulating certain games. After all, this is an Old School Renaissance game that is emulating ODnD, but still, a little originality can't hurt, right?

I'm going to list and explain what I have so far, and any suggestions on altering these factions or adding new factions would be much appreciated. Thanks for all the help everyone has given so far.

Factions:

Blackrock Mining Co.- This was the original owner of the mine and is now trying to get it back. Members get social status and digging bonuses.

The Law- These are the local sheriffs and deputies. The generally work with Blackrock, but put keeping the peace above all. They'd like to close the hellmouth in the mine to return peace to the town.

The Pinkertons- The federal government has sent in agents to secure the mine's riches for federal use. I haven't decided if this game is set pre or post-Civil War. If pre, then the gov would want it for a buildup. If post, then they'd want the riches for reconstruction.

Rocky Mountain Rail Co.- A railroad baron has set up shop in town. He wants the mine closed because it's drawing passengers and freight away from more lucrative routes, not to mention the undead occasionally escape the mine and tear up his tracks.

The Carnival- This is a band of mystics, gamblers, and zealots. It is a multi-racial group accepting of each other but distrustful of outsiders. They see the hellmouth as a source of power that they can harness to rule the West.

The Western Alliance- Several Native American tribes have allied themselves on a nearby reservation and are infiltrating the mine to use its riches to arm themselves for a coming offensive against white settlers in the West. They like the wealth the mine brings, but the evil spirits alarm their religious sensibilities. Thus they are ambivalent toward the Coyote Lode.

The Smithsonian Institute West- This is my mad scientist group. The Pinkertons aren't the only federal agency involved in the mine. The Smithsonian West is studying the monsters to see if there are military or medical applications for them.

The Temperance Movement- a band of women have vowed to kick all the gamblers, snake oil salesman, prospectors, pimps, mystics, and mad scientists out of their town and restore it to the respectable place it used to be. They hate the mine and want to use any money they get from it to purchase land surrounding the mine and make it off limits to trespassers.

Anyway, that's my start. Is this too reminiscent of Deadlands or am I original enough here? Feedback welcome!

Troy, I have had similar issues in the past and I stumbled across a great way to come up with faction rivalry without falling back on old stereotypes, etc...1) Enumerate all the factions you want to start with2) Find issues that each faction will be on one side of or the other. It is important not to pick "good vs evil" as that will severely limit your ability to discover new alliances. A good example is science vs. religion. Every faction will come out on one side or the other, and it won't necessarily fall on good vs. evil lines.3) Put each faction on one side or the other.4) Tweak factions so that none of them are identical5) Prioritize each Issue from most divisive to least.6) Factions that are identical except for the least divisive issue are allies7) Factions that are all opposite on each issue are enemies.8) Mix in geographical rivalry and/or more divisive comparisons and you have a nice list of allies and enemies. Using this system, I discovered that the Sith Military and Republic Military (not the Jedi or Sith, the actual soldiers) have more in common with each other than almost any other faction in the KOTOR setting. It was surprising, but refreshing to see that alliance form inthe back of my mind...

I use this system a lot, I can run it down in further detail if you want.

That is some great advice, Dave! In fact, all your posts in my threads arr very helpful. I really like having a procedure to follow, and your method definitely provides that. Making the factions issue-oriented rather than relying on over-done motifs is far superior. Thanks! :)